Pharmacists dump Blackmores promo deal

PHARMACISTS have pulled out of a "Coke and fries"-style promotion of vitamin supplements to customers with prescriptions amid a public backlash.

The Pharmacy Guild of Australia, the peak body for the nation's 5000 community pharmacies, today said plans for pharmacists to promote four dietary products made by supplements giant Blackmores had been dropped.

An agreement to add the guild's gold cross endorsement to the products was also dumped.

News of the deal, which was described by Blackmores as a "Coke and fries" type of promotion, sparked outrage when it was revealed in September.

Hundreds of pharmacists, doctors, academics and patients attacked the plan, saying there was no proof supplements offered any additional benefits to prescription medications.

The guild said the decision to abandon the deal with Blackmores was mutual and been made "in view of the strong level of public concern about the proposal" and "ill-informed and inflammatory" media reporting.

"We entered this arrangement in good faith, but we have now agreed with Blackmores that the furore that has been created is doing damage, and must be dealt with before it further damages community pharmacists and the patients they serve," guild president Kos Sclavos said in a statement.

"The only alternative is to cancel the endorsement, and this has been done.

"I add my personal apologies for any distress this has caused to pharmacists."

News of the decision was welcomed by the Pharmacist Coalition for Health Reform, which represents more than 20,000 pharmacists.

"Our members were extremely unhappy with the deal, with a Pharmacist Coalition poll of close to 500 people showing that 94 per cent disagreed with Blackmores' deal and believed 'it undermined the professionalism of pharmacists'," spokeswoman Yvonne Allinson said.

"Pharmacists are one of the most trusted professionals in the community for a good reason and we are pleased that they are not going to be put in a position where their reputation could be damaged."

Under the arrangement struck between Blackmores and the guild, pharmacists would have received a computer prompt to promote a selection of Blackmores products when filling prescriptions for certain medications.

People with prescriptions for cholesterol and blood pressure medications, antibiotics and proton pump inhibitors to help gastro-intestinal problems were all meant to be asked if they would consider trying a Blackmores product.

The Australian Medical Association attacked the deal saying it leveraged off the credibility of pharmacists and suggested the Blackmores products could add something extra to their prescribed medication.

Blackmores had argued that its products could help patients because the long-term use of certain prescription medications could reduce the levels of some nutrients in the body.

It had estimated that its products could be companion-sold with more than 58 million prescriptions a year, more than a third of the 183.9 million scripts dispensed in Australia.